Red Light Secrets + Amsterdam Canal Cruise
Location
Essentials
- Discover the secrets of the world's oldest profession
- Located in a former brothel in the heart of the Red Light District
- Sail through Amsterdam’s 17th century canal ring
Practical info
Children
Minimum age for entry is 16 years for Red Light Secrets
Opening hours Red Light Secrets
Sunday - Thursday: 11.00 - 22.30
Friday - Saturday: 11.00 - 23.30
Check-in at LOVERS Canal Cruises
Check-in 15 minutes before departure
Languages
The free audio guide at Red Light Secrets is available in English, German, Dutch, French and Spanish
The free audio-guide on the boat is available in Dutch, English, German, French, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, Catalan, Turkish, Polish, Thai, Indonesian, Russian, Korean, Japanese, Chinese, Arabic, Hebrew and Hindi
Ticket information
Ticket directly available on smartphone
Ticket can be rescheduled or cancelled up to 8 hours in advance
Only service dogs (who must be identifiable as such) are allowed on the boat
More information
For questions about the product, please contact [email protected]
Accessibility
Getting there
Public Transport
The nearest stops to Red Light Secrets are Nieuwmarkt (metro 51, 53 & 54) and Central Station (metro 52). The LOVERS Canal Cruises quay is only 3 minutes away on foot from Amsterdam Central Station.
About
The rich history of the Dutch capital
An Amsterdam canal cruise is the perfect way to get to know the city and its rich history. With over 100 kilometres of winding waterways, there are few better ways to experience Amsterdam than on a canal boat. Pair this classic Amsterdam activity with a trip to the fascinating Red Light Secrets Museum to discover the secrets of the world's oldest profession.
Marvel at the merchant houses and beautiful churches as you cruise through the World Heritage-listed canal district on an Amsterdam canal cruise before, or after, you visit the 17th-century canal house that is home to Red Light Secrets. With this combination, you decide what you do and when you do it. Save time and money with this combi ticket.
The secrets of the Red Light District
Have you ever wondered what it’s like to work in the sex industry? Or what it’s like to sit behind the district’s famed windows as people walk past? Go behind the scenes at Red Light Secrets, otherwise known as the Museum of Prostitution. Located in a 400-year-old canal house and former brothel, Red Light Secrets shows you on an interactive and compassionate look at the life of prostitutes.
The Red Light District in Amsterdam is the home of the city's sex industry, locally known as De Wallen. The area is known for its narrow streets, sex shops, strip clubs and of course window prostitution, all are legal in the Netherlands.
Red Light Secrets is immersive and informative. See the inside of a prostitute's room and listen to their stories to find the answers to questions, such as who chooses to do this work? And why? How much money do they make? What types of people visit a window prostitute? And what happens when the curtains close?
Enjoy the view during a canal cruise
An Amsterdam canal cruise is the perfect addition to a trip to Red Light Secrets. During the hour-long cruise, you’ll discover the beautiful canal belt of the ‘Venice of the North.' The Amsterdam canal cruise is truly one of Amsterdam’s highlights, it’s no wonder that the 100km-long canal belt is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Marvel at the three most famous canals of the city, the Keizersgracht, Prinsengracht, and Herengracht, alongside which wealthy spice merchants constructed grand houses during the Dutch Golden Age. The Amsterdam canal cruise is significantly enriched by an audio guide, in 19 languages, packed with fascinating information about the city's history.
Reviews
53 reviews
Amsterdam City River Cruise
The canal cruise was perfect, the captin come guide gave us headphones to listen in our own language. The riverboat was clean and tidy, easy to walk on and off, it was a nice day and we got some beautiful pictures!! A great end to a fantastic tourist holiday!!
Early evening cruise
We did the early evening cruise to see the lights of the city. Easy to get tickets by turning up and allocated the next cruise. There is an audio link that you can use, but we decided to just sit outside and watch the views. An hour cruise which was interesting and pretty.
Great information finding cruise
We had an hour cruise around the canals in Amsterdam and learnt a lot whilst doing it. We really enjoyed every second. My five year old didn’t want to get off. The captain was also very knowledgeable.
A Must Try
This is a must do on your list of things to do while visiting Amsterdam. It takes you through areas that you may not be able to walk to. The captain points out things of interest and tells the story behind it.
A fab way to see Amsterdam
We had a really lovely time on the one-hour canal cruise. Our captain was very lovely and cracked a good few jokes throughout the tour. The GPS guided tour via the headphones was a fab idea and there were so many language options available which was a really pleasant surprise. We learned so much about the history of the city and the tour even helped us to find places to visit again in further detail after the tour. The price was extremely reasonable considering the excellent experience we got, and our boat even left a little early which was nice. All in all, we would definitely recommend it!
The captian made the experience
We really enjoyed it. We show I I amsterdam cards at the ticket office ans were on a boat and on our way within 10 minutes. Our captain (Tony I believe was his name) was lovely ,cheerful and very knowledge of the area, he also had 2 traniees with him and they were also lovely. The facilties were clean. If I hadn't have had the I amsterdam card I would have still paid what the price was (which I think is reasonable).
Well worth the experience
1st time in Amsterdam and loved it Booked on the Lovers Canal cruise early in the morning to get a feel for the city and to get our bearings The tour showed the highlights of the city and the comentry was good
Cruising backward :(
sitting backward is really annoying... Except that I think it is very nice and the captain was a nice guy, he was really funny, making jokes.
Go with Lovers
Booked through Get Your Guide literally 20 mins before boarding. They let us join a boat that was boarding as soon as we got there, which was great, no standing around as they weren’t so busy. We took a daytime trip and glad we did. Maybe evening cruises would be better in warmer months with open boats. The boat was modern, clean and warm and no condensation at all during any part of our cruise. The headphones were included and the audio commentary was interesting. The captain also added bits and pieces of extra info which was appreciated. It was a great introduction to the canals of Amsterdam as we decided to do this trip literally an hour after arriving in Amsterdam. It helped us with our bearings and with general historical info about the city. The reason for 4 rather than 5 stars is that we seemed to stay on one canal, no museums seen, no Anne Frank house, nothing like that, which was a shame as lots of tourists probably visit these places afterwards. Maybe the canal boat starting from the museums area take that route? We took the one from the station. There are lots of canal boat companies, but we were more than happy with Lovers as their boats appear a lot more modern than many others we saw. I would definitely recommend the cruise and my teenage daughter said it was one of the nicest things we did when in Amsterdam.
Great couples tour
A amazing tour with some great canal boat skills performed and a great host. This tour is very much for couples and being alone I felt a little out of place.
A Great Way To See The City
Done the open boat tour during the summer. A great way to see the city and the audio guide gave plenty of information along the way. Extremely relaxing to the point I almost fell asleep half way around. Would definitely do the tour again if I’m back in Amsterdam
Quick visit to see Amsterdam
Guide was very friendly and knowledgeable. Although it rained, I still enjoyed the tour. The only complaint was the audio was difficult to hear at times.
Relaxing hour on the canals
Nice relaxing hour around the canals. Duco (sorry if I have not got the name correct) was informative with history and fun facts. Would recommend.
Good cruise
It was educational, slowed down at the right places. The pilot was polite and explained well- was fun and energetic.
Es un tour más general
El tour está muy bien, en cambio si ya has hecho un freetour por la ciudad recomiendo el crucero primero, te da una vista más general, mi amiga y yo al haber hecho antes el freetour volvimos a ver sitios en los que ya habíamos estado.
Très belle découverte en péniche
Croisière avec le groupe lovers Sympathique croisière traduit en plusieurs langue 1h pour vous faire un tour des canaux avec visite guidée et indication sur les différents quartiers/monuments / place/ marché /histoire / musée de la ville etc Très bien pour découvrir une 1er fois en famille en amies en couple cette croisière et très bien adapter
Très bien
Petite balade bien sympathique, est l’audio était très bien fait rien à redire. Le petit bar pour attendre est très sympa aussi avant d’accéder au bateau.
Informativ und schön
Wir hatten einen super symphatischen Bootsführer der viele Nebeninfos gab. War schön und informativ. 1 Stunde hat gut gereicht und empfehlenswert. Gute Karte erhalten für den Treffpunkt und pünktlich, sowie sauber.
Un paseo agradable en barco
Muy puntuales, un paseo tranquilo, recomiendo que cuando lo cojan miren bien la metereología, pues así podrán disfrutar mejor de las vistas.
DA PROVARE
Giro dei canali in barca assolutamente da consigliare. Audioguida in italiano e Simon simpaticissimo conducente che comunque dava ulteriori informazioni in inglese. La durata è di un'ora ma ci è dispiaciuto scendere!!
Tolle Tour
Die Stunde waren zwar nur ca. 50 Minuten, aber die Tour war wunderschön. Unbedingt abends machen, die Atmosphäre ist unbeschreiblich!
👍👍👍
Sehr nette Bootstour über die Kanäle von Amsterdam! Man bekommt viele interessante Informationen über die Stadt und deren Geschichte erzählt.
intéressant
La promenade sur les canaux dure une heure. Les audio guides permettent de suivre les commentaires dans différentes langues. Le long de cette promenade fluviale, nous découvrons l'histoire de la ville et des monuments "célèbres". Par contre, le confort est rudimentaire.
Para escalas cortas de vuelo
Las vistas son preciosas, aunque desde posición incómoda porque el barco estaba muy lleno. El capitán muy simpático e hizo agradable el viaje.
Crociera easy
Crociera molto carina con guida in tutte le lingue. Partenza vicino ala stazione centrale. Durata circa un ora. Visita dei canali principali di Amsterdam. Da provare
Interesting museum
The museum was very interesting as it gave us an insiders view of the life of a prostitute. Made me realize how hard a life this can be but very lucrative.
Good experience
Lovely museum. Very short but informative. would recommend when passing but would not go out of my way. Would recommend
Complete change of perspective!
We visited this attraction at night and found it incredibly interesting, educating and thought provoking. It really helped understand the culture of the city and the people behind the faces in the window. The audio guides were very good and staff were extremely helpful. It was very busy but this did not take away from the experience. Some complained at having to queue outside despite having pre-booked tickets, but this didn’t take long and we didn’t mind at all. Definitely add to your must visit list!
Interesting history behind open prostitution in Amsterdam
Right on the main drag of Red Light District, can't miss it, next to the live sex show, admission 14.50 euros, small but definitely interesting if you like learning about this type of profession
Definitely worth the visit if your interested in more than just what's behind the red lighted windows
Walking around the red light district left us with a lot of questions about the history behind the red light district and those who work there. Here we found some answers. Taking a break from wandering and getting a little behind the scenes info made our stay much more worthwhile then just walking around gawking lime the masses.
Amazing
Great museum, very informative and fun to go to. Myself and my partner really enjoyed our time there, I’d say it took about 45mins to walk round.
Great Little Museum
Fascinating little museum within the Red Light District which tells a story about what life was like for sex workers. Not the biggest museum you will ever visit but we’ll worth a look around while in Amsterdam
Interesting facts
This is an informative Museum. You get interesting insides and a lot of facts about prostitution. Everything is told in an entertaining and descriptive way.
You simply must visit
Such an interesting eye opening thought provoking experience. A real opportunity to look at life from the other side of the glass. Excellent museum, shocked, amused, entertained, educated and informed all in one visit.
Vakantie
Tof om te doen echt een aanrader Leerrijk en geweldig Mooi en gezellig Zowiezo ga ik 2de keer doen met vrienden en familie
Musée très intéressant
Le musée de la prostitution se trouve en plein coeur du quartier rouge, dans un vieux building typique néerlandais. L'entrée coûte 14.5 €, ce qui est un peu cher. La visite se fait via un audioguide qui nous donne des informations. On entend le témoignage d'une prostituée des pays de l'est qui a exercé plusieurs années ce métier là. La visite commence par une vidéo puis on évolue au sein d'une bâtisse assez étroite, sans ascenseur, avec des escalier assez petits. Plusieurs arrêts jalonnent le parcours, dont la fameuse vitrine qui donne sur la rue. On apprend beaucoup de choses sur la population qui se prostitue, la légalisation de celle-ci, le fonctionnement du quartier (avec ses vitrines), les clients et leurs demandes, la prostitution dans le monde et la dangerosité potentielle, les tarifs, le mode de vie des prostituées, etc. On peut voir des chambres de prostituées (avec le matériel) reconstituées, des objets utilisés par celles-ci, etc. Vers la fin, des témoignages concernant les meurtres et sévices que peuvent subir les prostituées et enfin, un espace "confession" où vous pouvez écrire la votre et, qui sait, peut-être sera-t-elle affichée sur le mur de confessions ! Le personnel est sympathique. La visite se fait un peu vite, certes, mais l'on peut en apprendre beaucoup sur les prostituées et mettre fin aux préjugés que l'on peut avoir concernant ce métier.
Curioso y necesario
Museo no muy grande, pero interesante. Aporta mucha información sobre la prostitución en Amsterdam..
“Prostitución e Historia”
Una muy buena sumergida en los antecedentes de este tan antiguo oficio, aquí podremos ver la evolución histórica de lo que ha sido una profesión más vieja de lo que creemos y cómo ha ido convirtiéndose en un tipo de turismo el cual necesita ser regulado por muchos aspectos. Un lugar donde podrás aprender características del oficio en un par de horas.
Intresssnt
Trevlig kille i biljettluckan, fick en rejäl familjerabatt👍 Intressant att se insidan av en bordell och höra en prostituerad berätta historier. Och få reda på lite "hemligheter", en hemlighet man får reda på är tex varför det är just rött ljus i fönsterna. Bilden man får i slutet av museet blir ett bra minne från Amsterdam. Tyckte besöket på prostitutionsmuseet var bra, ganska sorligt dock, man känner att man är lyckligt lottad här i livet
Värt ett besök
Skrämmande och intressant museum. Man får en annan syn när man går och lyssnar på historier av en kvinna om varför de gör det dom gör och hur allt går tillväga. Museumet är en gammal bordell där en kvinna blev mördad.
Informativt litet museum
Ett litet men informativt museum som visar lite av vardagen för prostituerade i Amsterdam. Väl värt ett besök! Rundturen gör man på egen hand och det tar ca 30-40 minuter.
Intressant och värt ett besök!
Museumet ligger mitt i Red Light District och är definitivt värt ett besök! Ger ett ärligt och informativt intryck av prostitutionen i Holland, på gott och ont och en ordentlig tankeställare i vardagen för dessa kvinnor som jobbar i Red Light.
Interesant besøg
Vi gik gennem huset med en høre dims hvor Inga fortæller historier og giver info om branchen gennem tiden.. Vil klart anbefale og give 1,5 € for dem, de sætter ord på oplevelsen. Vi var 4 veninder efter to gin& tonic på en bøssebar i nærheden så ok stemningen var høj😄
Utrolig spændende
Har besøgt to sex museer i Amsterdam og dette er uden tvivl det bedste. God og lærerigt indsigt om red light district. Kan anbefales
Must visit i amsterdam
Red lights distrikt er klart et af de fascinerende områder i Amsterdam og dette lille museum er ingen undtagelse. Vi skulle egentlig bare slå noget tid ihjel da vi var i området og ventede på det blev mørkt. Det kostede os sølle 7,5€ at komme ind pr person og var rigtig spændende at gå rundt og læse og se hvordan forholdene er for pigerne i vinduerne. Der er stor forskel på disse historier og vi brugte hurtigt en time derinde
Having doubts? You can cancel or reschedule this booking up to 8 hours in advance for free.
